This is where I publish my preliminary research notes and ideas concerning warfare in the Book of Mormon. This is a spot for civilians, military historians, members of the LDS church and anybody else who enjoys studying the military aspects of the Book of Mormon and its impact on the LDS Church, society and the field of military history.

New Title!

Now Available in Paperback!

Follow by Email

About Me

I have a B.A. from Southern Virginia University and an M.A. in History from Norwich University. I have presented or published papers on Napoleonic warfare, East Asian history, Book of Mormon warfare, and the American Civil War. In 2009 I separated from the military after serving 9 years as an infantry riflemen, squad leader and intelligence analyst.
I am the author of “Forming the Formless: Sun-Tzu and the military logic of Ender Wiggins,” “Offensive Warfare in The Book of Mormon and a Defense of the Bush Doctrine,” and "The Battle Experience in the Book of Mormon." I have authored numerous articles for the Encyclopedias of Military Philosophy and Russia at War. My books Ancient Warfare in The Book of Mormon and Decisive Battles in Chinese History are now available.
Currently I teach history at American Public University and several other schools. I studied in the MPhil/PhD War Studies Program at Kings College London. My political and military analysis can be found in Opslens magazine, Strategy and Tactics, Fox News, Strategy Bridge, Washington Examiner and other places.

Friday, January 20, 2017

I'm proud to announce my article, "Experiencing Battle in the Book of Mormon" has just been published by the Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture. The abstract reads: Historical chronicles of military conflict normally focus on the decisions and perspectives of leaders. But new methodologies, pioneered by John Keegan’s Face of Battle, have focused attention on the battle experience of the common soldier. Applying this methodology to a careful reading of details within the Book of Mormon shows an experience in battle that is just as horrific as it is authentic.

The process took a little longer than I had anticipated. I actually thought this might come out last summer in time for the gospel doctrine lessons on the war chapters. But it is here and ready for your reading enjoyment.

[I'm a free lance writer. If you found value in this work please consider making a small donation using one of the pay pal buttons at the bottom of the page. Thank you.]

Monday, January 9, 2017

A short time ago I posted a link to my article about the misuse of words. This has obvious application in my research on the use of the word robber to delegitimize the Gadiantion Robbers. Thomas Sowell is an intellectual that has been highly influential for decades. I first discovered his writings in 2007, when I read the book Black Rednecks and White Liberals. He explained how the supposedly authentic black culture seen in so many inner cities was actually inspired by the lower class white culture of the south. He has an excellent ability to explain powerful concepts in clear and concise language. I employ his discussion of the Hawley Smoot tariff to teach my students about the Great Depression. I especially enjoy his books on economics where he discusses why price controls lower quality and affordable laws make things unaffordable. He recently retired and the National Review has been republishing many of his weekly columns.

In a recent column discussing the language around taxes he said this about the misuse of words:

"It is one of the many signs of the mindlessness of our times that all sorts of people declare that “the rich” are not paying their “fair share” in taxes, without telling us concretely what they mean by either “the rich” or “fair share.” Whether in politics or in the media, words are increasingly used, not to convey facts or even allegations of facts, but simply to arouse emotions. Undefined words are a big handicap in logic, but they are a big plus in politics, where the goal is not clarity but victory — and the votes of gullible people count just as much as the votes of people who have common sense."

Several weeks ago I wrote this about the misuse of worse as well. I was perhaps a bit nicer than I should have been in denying any malice behind the practice, (maybe I just need the cynicism that comes with years of responding to these clowns), but I also identified the misuse of words to arouse emotions:

"In the battle of competing ideas, sometimes words can be the first casualty. The abuse of the word “establishment” was so rampant during the election that I joked I should have started a restaurant with that name so I could get free advertising. All joking aside, misapplying words can muddle the debate, obscure real threats, or become a tool of hysteria.

Many of these words aren’t necessarily used with ill intent but rather as a way to illicit an emotional response and compensate for poor arguments. For example, anti-war advocates like to use the word “warmonger” to insult people or positions they don’t like without having to engage the relative merits of the proposed action."

It is very gratifying to see the same ideas that I have in the writings of others, especially such luminaries as Thomas Sowell. It helps to ease the frustration I feel when my great ideas and articles have a difficult time finding an outlet, or being noticed above the click bait trash and fake news. If you like my ideas, make sure to link to this page or check out my current writing gig at Opslens magazine. Thanks for reading!

[I work as a free lance writer. If you found value in this work please consider donating using the pay pal buttons at the bottom of the page.]

Thursday, January 5, 2017

[This is a copy of my application to the 2017 Mormon Theology Seminar. This is always a good chance to explore different ideas. I never did come up with a good title so I hope you don't mind jumping right in.]

The powerful speech of Abinadi explained pivotal Messianic
concepts and elucidated the God head in ways that recalled some of the early Christian
ecumenical councils. The largest theme is the duality of Heaven and Earth
represented in Mosiah 15:4: And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father
of heaven and of earth. The study of Abinadi’s words justifiably focuses on his
amazing testimony of Christ and his bold stand for truth. But preaching doesn’t
happen in a vacuum. His talk about the
nature of God and His judgements reveal repeating and important scenes in the Book of Mormon regarding the nature of
prophets, and their possible conflict with both political power and the institutional
church.

The king and prophet are respective representations of Heaven
and Earth. The prophets are key
explainers of spiritual text which govern the kings, and kings are the divine
conduit that governs temporal affairs. The prophet Micaiah in 1st
Kings 22 does a good job of illustrating the possible scene and interplay
between king and prophet represented in Abinadi’s preaching. In the story the kings
of Israel and Judah sat on their thrones and consulted 400 priests regarding
future military action. The 400 priests give their approval for the joint
attack. Yet one of the kings wasn’t satisfied with the answer. He was reluctant to consult the prophet
Micaiah because he always prophesied evil concerning the king but did so
anyway. When pressed Micaiah gave them grim news concerning the judgements of
God and used Christ like language when he compared their defeat to being a
flock without a shepherd.

Micaiah then testified of a vision that truly revealed the
dual nature of the episode. As Cristiano Grottanelli explains the text, “On
earth we see the thrones of the kings with the ranks of prophets and with the
recalcitrant truth telling prophet. In heaven we see the throne of Yahweh with
the ranks of spirits, and the lying spirit volunteer.”[1]The
encounter ended when Micaiah is then slapped by one of the priest and cast into
prison. The story of Micaiah and Abinadi
are fascinating accounts of a prophet being forced to oppose the king, testify
of destruction, contradict the priests in the court, and then have a
theophonic experience that mirrors the earthly scene. Abinadi is brought before
a king, contradicts the priests, teaches of the duality between Heaven and
Earth, testifies of Christ being born, His being brought before a king and killed,
and then Abinadi’s experience ends with his death.

The treatment of Abinadi is not only a possible type scene
with the Bible and representation of duality; it also illustrates key themes in
the Book of Mormon. Abinadi being
brought before an angry king for his preaching recalls prophets such Alma in
the city of Ammonihah (Alma 14:2), and Nephi upon his tower (Helaman 8:5-6) who
faced the people’s wrath over the enunciation of political consequences of
spiritual condemnation. The other theme,
also represented in the Bible, is the conflict between the priests who are part
of the institutional church and the court of the King, and the prophets who are
often charismatic and outside of the organized church. This is most clearly seen in Samuel the
Lamanite, who preached on the walls, was never heard again, and the people whom
he converted had to seek out Nephi, the institutional leader of the church for
baptism (Helaman 16:3-4). The prophet Micaiah also contradicted the larger
number of priests who were special guests and interpreters for the King. Abinadi explicitly threatened both the kings
(secular) life and safety of kingdom while also undermining the position and
prophecies of the priests. Much like the people in Jeremiah’s day, the priests opposing
Abinadi contended that their kingdom is strong (12:14-15).

The spiritual teachings of Abinadi receive a good deal of
attention. But his words about God being the Father of Heaven and Earth suggest
a connection between the political history of the Nephites and the spiritual
preaching of the prophets that is understudied.
Abinadi represents a possible type scene comparable to Micaiah’s
experience in 1 Kings 22, and it also highlights the experience of many Nephite
prophets in having their spiritual messages ruffle temporal feathers, and
suggests a difference between free-lance prophets and institutional
priests.

I’m particularly attracted to the seminar’s intense reading
and focus on new lines of inquiry into the text and believe I could add a great
deal to the seminar. I have extensive
academic experience with over a dozen academic publications and presentations.
My most recent work includes a research grant that allowed me to study the
early insurgency of Mao Zedong, and a contract with Westholme Press to produce
a book on decisive battles in Chinese history.

Regarding the Book of Mormon,
my methodological focus has reexamined assumptions about the narrative in the text.
This has produced a manuscript length volume which discusses a revisionist
history within the Book of Mormon currently
under review for publication. Some of that research was previewed in a
well-received presentation at the 2016 FAIR conference which examined the
social and political factors that might have fueled the Gadianton insurgency. Another focus has been to examine the
relevance of the text in formulating foreign policy. Some of this research has
been published in past monographs and contributions to collected volumes and
conferences. My most recent piece represents ground breaking research into
previously neglected verses that discuss preemptive war. I look forward to bringing these skills to
the 2017 seminar. Thank you.

[Thanks for reading! I work as a free lance writer so if you found value in this work please consider making a donation using the pay pal buttons below.]